The Peanut Reaction
by minor-thing
Summary: Penny gives Leonard his birthday present. Leonard/Penny


The Peanut Reaction

Penny gives Leonard the sweater she bought him. Set at the very end of _The Peanut Reaction_.

-Leah

The apartment was a mess. Bottles everywhere. Sheldon, fast asleep on the chair, had gone to bed. Raj and Howard doubled on Howard's scooter home.

Penny had apologized profusely for Leonard missing the party. She'd brought him a beer from the fridge and a slice of the cake, explaining how, in its full form, it'd been in the design of an atom. At this, Leonard laughed and sat down on the couch. He was tired and giddy from the thought of the birthday party that could have been.

She sat down on the couch next to him, up close with not a breath of air between them.

"Raj took a video around midnight." Penny explained, pulling out her cell phone. "Care to watch?"

Leonard took a swig of beer. "Yeah, sure."

"_Ok, Leonard, here I am at your birthday party. I don't know where you are, dude, but it's really kick ass."_

The video played, they watched, and, when it was over, Penny slung her arm around Leonard's shoulder and apologized for again for their missing the party.

Leonard shrugged, thumbing Penny's phone. He could feel her pulling him to her. He whipped his head up from his hands in time to hear her whisper: "Happy birthday." She kissed him, very gently, very briefly.

And there it was: sexual energy. If it hadn't already been present just in their living and breathing around one another, or Penny's plunging neckline, it was there now. Palpable, tangible, inevitable.

So, Leonard kissed her. Softly again, but not brief. They squared their bodies to one another and they closed in the distance between them.

Penny broke away.

"I um, I have your birthday present."

And just like that, she was off the couch, in the kitchen, retrieving the Superman gift bag from its hiding place in the kitchen cupboard.

"Oh, you didn't have to get me anything." Leonard wasn't being facetious. She really didn't have to buy him anything.

"Oh come on, it's only your birthday once a year."

He met her in the kitchen. Penny stood on the opposite side of the breakfast bar from him, a whole a countertop between them.

Leonard shook the bag with a big smile on his face. "Ah, I wonder what it could be…" He shook the bag again, his ear to the present, hoping to hear a hint.

"Oh my god, just open it."

Leonard laughed and pulled the tissue paper from the top of the bag, revealing the sweater that she'd bought. He pulled it out of the bag and held it up.

With a sincere smile and a swollen heart, he said: "I love it! It's great!"

"Yeah? Do you really?" She bit her nails, "The guys said it was kind of an ordinary gift, but…"

Leonard shook his head profusely. No way. "No, Penny, it's great – really." He smiled. "Thank you!"

And then, so did she. With the same sincerity he had. "You're welcome."

There was a moment in that kitchen, just the two of them grinning goofily at one another, the brown and white geometric patterned zippered hoodie hanging between them.

"You have to try it on!"

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, you have to know if it fits." Penny circled over to him. Leonard swore he saw hesitation in her movement, hesitation in her pulling off his gray cargo jacket.

He swallowed hard. So did she.

"Here." She unzipped the new sweater for him and held it up for him to try on.

He slipped it on; she zipped it up for him.

Sexual energy.

"Looks good."

Sexual energy.

"Thank you."

And, like a magnet, they were drawn together, arms clasped around one another, kissing.

Leonard could not pull her closer enough. He wrapped his arms tightly around her waist. His hands crawled up her back, tugging her closer.

Penny showed no further hesitation. She clung to him, arms wound around his neck, with purpose.

One year of pent-up sexual energy, melting.

Walking backwards in quick shuffling steps, Leonard led her to the couch. She unzipped his birthday present. Leonard hopped she didn't feel the sweat on his back.

She fell onto the couch, Leonard knelt on top of her, hovering over her, kissing her ear, her neck her collarbone. Their hands were outstretched over Penny's head, clasped.

He felt high. He felt warm, on fire.

She arched hips into his.

Oh my god.

Then, the door swung open. Raj and Howard stumbled in.

"_Helloooo_." Raj sung, tumbling in. One quick glance at Leonard on top of Penny, and the two of them exploded with laughter and sexually explicit cracks.

Penny buried her face in Leonard's chest in a moment of disappointment and what Leonard could only presume, based on how he felt himself, embarrassment.

"Scooter broke down." Howard explained, swinging open the fridge and taking out the Saran-wrapped cake. "I call couch!"

"Damn." Raj folded into the chair, wasted.

Leonard and Penny both sat up. Penny straightened her clothes.

She whispered to Leonard that she should go. Dripping with regret, he agreed. He walked her to the door and under the eagle eye of Howard, kissed cheek. Penny kissed his. Suddenly they were in France.

"Happy birthday, Leonard."

Leonard smiled. Suddenly: panic. Was this it? He didn't necessarily expect to sleep with her tonight… but happy birthday? That was the end of this?

No. He decided no, it wasn't.

Then: "You want to come over for coffee tomorrow morning? I can make eggs."

The insecure, coy smile on her lips when she asked made Leonard's face hot.

Apparently she'd too decided that it wasn't over.

He nodded. "Ten o'clock?"

"Ten o'clock."

f_in._

_Author's note: I love reading your reviews! Reviews are so appreciated! -Leah_


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